Manatee Charter School

When land negotiations for a new charter school were delayed more than three months, opening in time for the new academic year seemed virtually impossible. But, one solution made the impossible a reality. LJB offered a designer-led design-build delivery method to Ryan Companies, the developer and construction manager for the project. The agreement promised delivery of the building shell for the 63,000-square-foot, two-story tilt-up building in less than eight weeks – seven weeks shorter than originally planned. The accelerated schedule was required to ensure opening for the new academic year and protect the charter at this location from expiring. The new facility features tilt-up concrete wall panels with a brick formliner and rustication. Due to its geographic location, the school is designed to withstand 130 mph Exposure Category C wind.

As the design-builder, LJB held the contracts for structural design and construction of the tilt-up building shell as well as made material purchases. Two ways the design-build team accelerated the schedule were 1) pouring the tilt-up panels on casting beds so the floor slab and foundations could be done simultaneously and 2) leveraging two steel erection crews. By placing construction responsibility with the designer, there were fewer subcontractor handoffs, streamlined communication between all team members and reduced shop drawing submittal process.